Since my retirement, I have made it a daily ritual to read many long-term Care articles. One of my favorites is Kaiser, the leading non-profit newsroom nationwide. Kaiser focuses on health and long-term care subjects, with one article concerning hoarding. I recall my parents arguing as a child about my mother's inability to throw things away.
When my mother passed, it took me a month to throw away things she had collected. One example was using $100.00 bills as bookmarks in the books she kept in the bookcase. There was still enough left for a company to take away two truckloads. My mother grew up very poor. She was one of four kids living in a two-bedroom house. I am confident this is the reason she hoarded. Since that experience, I have always thrown away things I no longer need or want.
When I retired, I started evaluating what I no longer needed. To my surprise, there was a mountain of things that I should have discarded. My office had files I should have shredded 16 years before, and the mailbox on my computer had names of people who were no longer living.
Clutter builds up no matter how clever you think you are at throwing things out. Studies have estimated that hoarding disorders affect around 2.5% of the general population. My mother had spices in the kitchen dating back to the Clinton years.
Hoarding can cause health hazards. A cramped and disorderly home is especially dangerous for the elderly because the risk of falling and breaking a bone increases with age. For safety reasons, families think just going into their parents' home and cleaning everything in one swoop solves the problem. This can cause undue trauma for the hoarder.
As painstaking as it can be, it's better to systematically work with the hoarder by allowing them to sort through the home and decide what is essential and what can go. I still have things of my father's that date back to the day he passed away, which was in the seventies.
If you feel the hoarder will become hostile towards you, contact an outside agency for help. The hoarder still looks at you as the child and as the parent. People who hoard are often labeled lazy or dirty. No one who hoards will stop by name-calling them; instead, they will become more isolated.
If you need help, you can contact the Office of Healthy Aging (OHA) for referrals to agencies that can help you. Keep in mind that hoarding is always a form of mental illness. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to email me.
Sincerely,
Kathy Heren
Ms. Heren, who has recently retired as the Rhode Island State Long Term Care Ombudsman, leverages her extensive experience to contribute insightful guest blogs on critical issues affecting seniors and long-term care. Her writings in Connelly Law's blog section explore a wide array of topics she encountered in her professional journey, offering readers valuable perspectives and practical advice. It’s important to note that the insights and opinions presented in these blogs are those of Ms. Heren and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Attorney RJ Connelly III or any Connelly Law Offices, Ltd. team members. If you have any questions or need further information, please don’t hesitate to contact our office.
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